Harry Potter and the Magic of the Shadows
by largo777
Summary: Set during book 5 and post Battle City. Two evil forces join together. . .
1. Chapter 1

Harry Potter and the Magic of the Shadows

(I don't own any of this save the plot. All cards can be found in Yugioh World Championship Edition 2010, unless otherwise noted.

This is set post-Battle City and during Order of the Phoenix.)

Prologue:

It had been a week since the Dark Mark had burned. The unknown Death Eater had finally made it back to England. He had escaped capture during the first fall of the Dark Lord by simply running. Once the mark burned he knew it was time to return. Slowly, so as to not set off alarms, he returned. It was almost time to return to the Dark Lord. As he walked toward the deserted ally where he could finally apperate the final leg of his journey, he saw a young man with pure white hair.

He grinned. He might as well have some fun before returning. A quick stunner knocked the boy out. Dragging the body into the ally, the Death Eater saw a glint of gold. He reached down to take it.

Anyone who was outside the ally would have seen a blinding flash of gold light. Shortly afterwords they would have heard someone screaming and someone else laughing. And then it was quiet.

Shortly afterwords a young man with white hair walked out of the ally, humming tunelessly as he twirled a small stick between his fingers. "Well, well, well. . . this will be fun. . . "


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 1: Count the Shadows

Harry was not in a good mood. He had been attacked by Dementors, almost expelled and put on trial. Dumbledore's "keep Harry out of the loop" polices was also getting on hi nerves. And to top it all off, ever since the attack Harry had been hearing things. Whispers. And out of the corner of his eyes he could swear he saw... "things." Not that he told anyone. Something told him that his friends wouldn't understand.

They did notice his mood. He was jumpy and tended to yell at almost anything. Hermione was worried. So was Ron. While Harry was at his trial they brainstormed. Eventually they knew what to do. Enlisting the aid of both Remus and Sirius, the two of them, along with Ginny and the twins, put Operation: Get Harry Out of the House into play. An hour later Harry, Hermione, and most of the Weasley children were loose, unsupervised, in downtown muggle London.

"Wow Hermione, I would have never expected you to plan this." Said George as they entered an arcade.

The bushy haired girl blushed. "Harry needs this, right Harry."

The boy in question was barely paying attention. He was hearing the whispers again. They were stronger though, and coming closer. Looking around he heard it, a voice, dark and evil. "Weakling."

"What was that Hermione?" He said distractedly.

She looked at him. "Harry, what's wrong?"

Another voice screamed. And another. Harry bolted out of the arcade. His friends looked confused but rushed after him. He darted into an ally and they followed. The whole group stopped dead. Three people in Death Eater robes lay on the ground, unmoving. A young man with white hair stood over them smiling.

"What did you do?" Harry asked the teen.

The white haired boy smiled even more. "And here I thought you'd be happy. Three, what were they called, Death Eaters I believe, banished to the Shadow Realm." He laughed the sound sending shivers down everyone's spine. "Of course if you want to deal with them yourself, I can send you to them." The boy raised one hand into the air, revealing some kind of card. "Come forth Man-Eater-Bug!"

A golden light filled the ally. When it cleared a large evil looking bug was advancing on them. They reached for their wands, except for Harry. He stood motionless, staring at the monster. Unthinkingly he raised his hand. "Servant of Shadows, come to my aid," he said in a strange echoy voice. He started glowing, gold light coming from his hands. Soon, the light faded, revealing a large black dragon. It was big and bulky and should not have fit in the ally, and yet it did. It stood on four legs and seemed to be covered in black hair. Its face was long and seemed to have whiskers and a mustache. The bug stopped in front of it, scared slightly. Harry seemed dazed to, and when he spoke it was as if someone else was using him.

"You, who serve the Darkness, come face the Light. Judgment Dragon, clear the field with your Light of Truth!"

The dragon seemed to grin as it lifted its head and howled. But the howl was much more then noise. As it howled, a light spread through the ally, eventually covering everything, before exploding. Harry's friends were blasted to the ground and the Death Eaters thrown against the wall, but the bug was gone, blasted by the force.

The white haired teen looked shocked. "Diabound, take me from this place." He said.

Before anyone could act a shadow moved. A large creature grabbed the teen and they both vanished into the darkness. The dragon howled again before fading into the shadows itself. Ginny rushed to Harry, grabbing his hand. Harry turned to her, but his face was blank. When he talked his voice had a strange echo.

"Do not worry for this one's soul young one." The voice spoke kindly, but cold. "He will not remember much of this, but you must aid him. More will come. The one you faced today seeks to send the world to the Shadows. We do not want this." Harry sagged and then collapsed. The voice, now easily identified as voices, spoke from all around them. "We cannot interfere again without upsetting an already delicate balance." And then they were gone.

Ron looked at everyone. "Anyone want to go to a Muggle school this year?"

-HPYGO-

Domino City, Japan

Max and Miriya Sterling were among the best Aurors in the Imperial Magi Court. They knew their job and did it well. It was for this reason they were assigned to Domino City. Ever since Battle City and the bizarre events surrounding the finals, the wizards of Japan were worried. Not only that, but the few prophets on staff were all starting to produce shadows. Well, except for that one guy who kept predicting giant robots, but he had his own issues.

Currently they were investigating a break in at Kiaba Corp. Apparently two individuals dressed in cloaks managed to sneak past all the security and into one of the sub-basements. Shortly afterwards they set off an alarm and were hit with over two hundred rounds of 9mm bullets. The Aurors were worried as the assailants both had the Dark Mark on them. The British however, said the two were obviously working alone.

Of course the three Death Eaters found soulless in the national museum were a bit harder to explain, especially since Japan had banished all Dementors over a century ago.

"Can you explain why we are here at this game store?" Max asked his wife as they entered game store owned by one Duke Devlin.

"Seto Kiaba, Marik and Isizu Ishtar, all three were finalists in Battle City. Mai Valentine has vanished, has been since the end of the tournament. Odion, who had been impersonating Marik, as well as Ryu Bakura, has left the country. Egypt and England respectively. That only leaves Joey Wheeler and Yugi Moto as possible targets if my hunch is right. And they plan on being here today."

Max smiled at his wife. He had come up with many of the same ideas, but didn't know how to track down this King of Games without tipping the boy off. "So I take it we're going to 'bump' into him?"

Miriya was about to answer when the unmistakable sound of someone Apperating echoed through the store. A quick look at her husband and they were off, using the stairs (and a few subtle charms) to get to the lower level Duel Monsters arena. They burst in, worried about what they would find.

The scene was confusing. Yugi and Joey stood back to back, their duel disks active, surrounded by five men in dark robes. Five more men were scattered around the room attacking the other Muggles in the room, well trying to at least.

One of the robed figured went down, a die landing next to his body. Two more went down, one to an uppercut by one of the muggle boys, the other tackled by the two girls. The sound of five voices all casting the Killing Curse got everyone's attention.

"Mirror Force!" Came the voice of Yugi Moto in response. The green blast was suddenly blocked by a shimmering wall of energy. The Aurors could only stare. The young duelist stood tall, the Eye of Horus suddenly glowing on his forehead. Time stood still. "You have trespassed on my soul and the souls of my friends, the Shadows have judged you and found you lacking. PENALTY GAME! ILLUSION OF TRUTH!"

Max and Mira watched as the blast from the Killing Curse rebounded from the barrier, splitting into ten beams that lanced through each of the dark wizards, causing them to scream before collapsing onto the floor, twitching.

"Uh," said Joey, "did you kill them?"

Yugi's voice was solemn when he next spoke. "No, my Light would not want that. Instead I sealed them into their own nightmares. They now experience everything they have done to others."

Everyone gasped at that. Max was worried, he knew of no magic that could do that. One of the girls spoke next. "How...how long?"

"That is up to them Serenity. The Penalty Game will last only until they are ready to pay for what they did." The king of games looked at Max and Miriya. "In the mean time, we should go."

"Easy for you to say, I own the place." Duke said in an irritated voice. "Man, I am NOT telling the cops the truth. Guys blasting at us with sticks. Man."

-HPYGO-

A few hours later the husband and wife Aurors sat having dinner going over everything. Yugi and his friends had been easy to convince that they dark wizards were just a gang of thugs and nothing to worry about... too easy Max felt. His wife agreed with him, but the guys upstairs didn't feel the same. The 'thugs' had turned out to be suspected Death Eaters who had moved to Japan after the first war. The Brits were still ignoring that, saying the group was acting alone. The Imperial Court wasn't buying it after this and was secretly prepping to aid against Voldermort. In the mean time Max and Miriya were given new orders and a prophecy.

_To: Max and Miriya Sterling_

_Keep an eye on the Duelists, the Dark One wants something from them._

_Addendum: Prophet Codename Zor Prime gives following message:_

_**Blessed with two hearts that beat as one**_

_**Watch us soar, with a love that conquers all**_

_**We will win**_

_Agent Hunter wagers 5 galleons that this actually is important._


	3. Chapter 3

_AN: Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoy this._

Chapter 2: Business an Abnormal

It was a desert. All around Harry, sand covered the lands. A strange pyramid hung upside down in the sky, making him wonder where exactly he was.

"So you are the one the Shadows had been drawn to," said a voice from behind him.

Harry turned quickly, only to find him face to face with a man in a turban. At first Harry was reminded of Quirrell, but something was different. For one, he was quite sure his first DA professor never wore large gold key or carried golden scales either. "Who are you?" Harry asked the figure.

The man looked at Harry. "Names have power young magician. If you wish to know mine, you must earn it."

_This has to be a dream _Harry thought. "And how do I earn your name?"

Turban held the scales out and let go. They hovered in the air in much the same way bricks do not. "You play a game."

As he said this the world around them changed. Shadows grew around them, covering the sky. The pyramid was joined by an upside-down version of Hogwarts. The desert winds increased and when they fell half the landscape was that of Hogwarts. Darkness fell around them, save for the glow from a single white feather that rested on one side of the scales.

"What is going on?" Harry asked.

"The Shadows have come for you, but you have the power to come for them."

Harry stared at the man. "What do you mean; does this have anything to do with the man who was attacking those Death Eaters?"

The scales tipped slightly on the side with the feather. "That is correct, magician. He can call the Shadows, just like you did to stop him."

Harry's eyes widened. "What do you mean? It felt like something took me over."

The man said nothing for the longest time.

Eventual Harry got frustrated. "What kind of game are you playing?"

Turban smiled as the feather was lowered more. "This is a Shadow game, and it's not the first one you've played."

Harry's eyes narrowed in thought. "What ever happened in the ally? That was one of these Shadow Games, right?"

The feather dropped more. "Correct magician. And the Shadow Games are not done. More are coming, and they will become quite dangerous as they come. Are you ready to face them?"

As a Gryphondor, Harry was about to say yes, but as he opened his mouth, there was a stabbing pain in his scar. Visions flashed in his eyes. Two men in a tomb, facing off with old magic's, one looking like the teen from earlier. Voldermort killing his parents. A town from ancient times being rounded up and melted down with gold. Ron and Hermione arguing about him last year. A man with a golden eye painting the Gods. Voldermort torturing Lucius Malfoy as Draco watched in fear. A teen with an insane look on his face fighting against a teen with tri-colored hair in a card game. And through it all, Shadows. Shadow seemed to be everywhere in the visions, telling him something. No, not telling, begging. They needed him. The past and the present were colliding and the future was at stake. What had the man asked again, was he ready? Was anybody ready for this?

"No," Harry said as the vision faded. "No one is."

As he said this the scales glowed brightly before literally jumping into his hands. As he held them, he knew that they were his now, but he was unsure if he wanted them.

Turban was just as shocked as Harry at this. "It seems that the Shadows want you more than I thought. I came only to see if you were worthy of the powers you now wield, but it seems you are worthy of so much more." He paused, looking closely at Harry. "I know not what the future holds, but others know how to use the Shadows and are coming. Seek their help, and tell them Shadi sends his regards."

Harry looked at him, and then woke up, back at Grimmauld Place. Such a strange dream he thought as he lay back down. He sat back up instantly. Sitting on the nightstand next to his bed were the Scales from his dream.

-line break-

Seto Kaiba was not amused. The letter for his brother Mokaba had arrived, luckily, while said brother was checking out some problems at the Kaibaland site.

The elder brother stared at the letter as if challenging its existence. In some ways the letter was a challenge to him. He never talked about his parents, and the rest of the world believed them dead. Kaiba knew better. He also knew that he was about as welcome at his parents' house as Tea's friendship speeches were to him.

Thinking about the Friendship Squad almost made him laugh. If they knew about this letter... It was almost enough to let them know, almost. Still, Mokaba had to know. No matter what Seto believed, Moki had to make his own choice in this matter.

Picking up the phone he called Roland and made arrangements. He was fairly sure what his brother would say, and he didn't want to have to wait for tickets to England.

-line break-

Joey, Tristan, Tea and Yugi had met up to at the Kame Game Shop to talk about "the event." All for agreed that this was more than just thugs with stolen military weapons as those two cops said.

"Thank you Ishizu," Yugi said as he hung up the phone.

"Well," Joey asked impatiently. "Does she or Marik know anything?"

Yugi shook his head. "Ishizu's sure she's never seen magic like this, and Marik swears he disbanded the Rare Hunters."

Tea looked concerned. "What about Yami?"

Yugi shifted slightly as his other self took over. "I too am in the dark Tea. Something tells me I know what's going on, but the answers are hidden in my lost memories."

Tristan seemed distracted.

"Yo, Tristan, what's on your mind?"

"I'm just wondering; would the Millennium Necklace be of any use?"

Everyone looked at him. Finally Yami got the necklace out of a safe. "Ishizu taught me a bit after Battle City. The Necklace can't be controlled, only guided so what we see might not make any sense." He said as he put the Item on. Focusing the Shadows, he activated it.

A flash of power and the four were standing in a house. "Take Harry and go, I'll try and buy you some time," said a man with black hair and glasses. The red haired woman grabbed a baby and ran up the stairs.

"What's this?" Joey asked.

Yami shook his head. "I think it's the beginning."

The door blew open. A figure dressed in black walked in. Pointing his wand, he killed the man with a blast of green light.

"The woman!" Tea cried out. Everyone rushed up the stairs the evil being right behind them.

They found her in the nursery. The baby was in the crib, she was saying something while waving her wand. Yami's eyes went wide in shock. "She's praying to the Egyptian Gods!"

Tristan raised an eyebrow. "Can you translate the prayer?"

Yami closed his eyes. "She's asking Ra and Osiris to protect her son." His eyes opened even wider. "And the power to control the Shadows!"

The evil man stepped into the room and killed her before turning to the boy. "I can't look." Tea said as she buried her face into Yami. Joey and Tristan were trying to attack the man, despite knowing they couldn't. The man sent the green spell at the baby, but it was blocked by a golden shield. The Millennium Necklace and Puzzle both started glowing as well. The Eye of Horus appeared on the boy's forehead.

"Yugs, what's going on?" Asked Joey.

Yami didn't know. All around him Shadow creatures appeared. The green energy blasted back on the evil man, destroying his body. Yami and everyone found themselves back in Yugi's room.

"Any idea what that means?" Tristan asked.

Yugi spoke up. "It means we go to England."

"How do you know that Yugs?"

"I'm not sure Joey, but something is pulling me there."

_AN (2): I wasn't sure if I was making Harry too powerful, but somehow this feels right. Please review._


	4. Chapter 4

_AN: Here's the next chapter. Sorry for the delay._

_Luiz4200: Yes, yes they are._

Chapter 3: Cross Section of Life

Harry sat in Sirius's room, looking the Black family tree. Ever since the gained those strange scales he had been drawn to the mural. For hours he would look at it, but he wasn't sure why.

"Still looking at that old thing." Sirius asked as he entered the room.

Harry didn't look away. "I don't know why, but I think I'm missing something important."

His godfather nodded. "Any idea what?"

"No clue."

Sirius shrugged and set next to Harry. "Any more strange dreams?"

"Any more items coming out of nowhere you mean."

Sirius smirked at that. The entire Order of the Phoenix was confused about what to do about the Scales. Dumbledore looked them over and agreed that they were powerful, but had basically told everyone to let Harry keep them. Bill came in to look at them as they were Egyptian, but refused to say anything after he saw them. No one but Fleur knew he then took a week off to hide under his bed.

Harry never mentioned it, but after gaining the scales he started seeing strange things in everybody's shadows. Creatures like he had never seen before. Sirius had a strange dog guarding him; Hermione had some kind of golden statue guarding her. Snape confused him as he had two shadow creatures, two women, one; a nun, the other a demon of some sort. Ron annoyed him as his shadow kept shifting; several comic book hero looking beings seemed to trade places every other time he looked at Ron.

And his shadow. He only saw it once. It seemed to be a true shadow. A dark dragon surrounded by light. His head hurt when he thought about it.

"I wonder what became of them." Sirius said, breaking up Harry's thoughts.

"Became of whom?"

Sirius used his wand to shine a light on the tapestry. Right beneath Bellatrix LeStrange were two names, Stephen and Malcolm LeStrange. "The only good things to come out of that nutcase."

"She had children!" Harry was beyond shocked.

"Stephen was the oldest, about two years older then you. Malcolm was born about three years after the fall of snakepants. The Malfoys gained custody after I was imprisoned, and I understand that Bella was arrested trying to drown her youngest a week after he was born."

Harry just stared at the names. "Malcolm would be starting Hogwarts this year if he's a wizard."

"He's still alive then?"

"The tapestry would show if they were dead." Sirius chuckled. "No one has seen them since Stephen turned 11. More then likely Lucius dropped them off at a muggle orphanage after Stephen didn't get his letter." _Or at least I hope so, _he added to himself.

-line break-

Gringotts bank was the only bank in the wizarding world. And the London branch was the branch to go to. Seto Kaiba walked into the bank carrying a briefcase. He had arrived in Diagon Ally early and had spent time at each store to get a feel for the exchange rate. Upon entering the bank he went not to a teller, but instead to the one of the information kiosks. Looking over the pamphlets Seto realized two things. His past was going to come out, and two, the wizarding world needed an economic shake up.

He went to the closest open teller. "How much?"

The goblin looked at him. "What do you mean, 'how much'?"

Seto's smile chilled the goblin. "How much for the bank?"

-line break-

Within five hours of this words being spoken, the wizards found Gringotts closed. Two hours after that the bank announced that it was under new management. The Ministry, of course, tried to invalidate the sell, but by then it was too late. Kaiba had arranged the buyout perfectly, and implemented new banking rules. Fair ones this time. The Ministry tried to arrest him, but found out that he, one, had paid the goblins well enough that they were now his bodyguards. And two, had turned the bank into a private institution, and as such, not subject to those laws the ministry had passed.

Lucius Malfoy was mildly amused. The wizard who bought the bank was still unidentified, but the confusion the buyout had caused was more than enough to allow him to gain access to certain files the Dark Lord had wanted. Several loyal Death Eater had been rendered soulless, but, unlike Dementor victims, they still lived. Investigations by the Ministry were classified, but easy to get in the confusion.

"My Lord," Lucius said as he entered the Dark Lord's chamber. "I have the files you asked for."

Voldemort turned his gaze to his servant. "Good Malfoy, you serve me well." Taking the papers he looked them over. "And your plan to remove Potter from Hogwarts?"

Lucius cringed. "It... failed my Lord."

Not even looking up from the papers, Voldemort smiled. "As I would have told you." Lucius buckled under a wandless non-verbal Crucio. "Still, Fudge must truly hate Potter now."

Panting, Lucius answered his master. "And Dumbledore. He is planning to make a play to take control of Hogwarts this year my Lord."

"How?"

"Appointing his undersecretary as the DADA teacher. Also, he wishes to give her more power, but that will need the Wizengamot's approval."

Voldemort appeared to be in thought. "Assist the small man. The more we can distract Dumbledore the better."

-line break-

As the deputy headmistress, it was Minerva McGonagall's job to meet with the families of muggleborn students. Her last meeting of this year was with Seto Kaiba, older brother and guardian of the first year Mokaba Kaiba. The younger Kaiba was not at the meeting, but that was not required. Such meetings are often more for the parent then the child. Seto had worked on his computer during the meeting but the professor was sure he had paid more attention then it seemed. His questions were to the point and dealt mainly with the wizarding world more than the school.

Overall, she came out of the meeting with the feeling that Kaiba knew more than he was telling.

-line break-

The Egyptian White Scale is the smallest pure dragon breed. It is know not just for its pure white color, but it's piercing sapphire eyes. They are also the only dragon breed a wizard can legally own. This is not because it is docile, in fact, White Scales are known for being far more aggressive than any other breed (including the Norwegian Ridgeback and Hungarian Horntail), but because they will "choose" a wizard to bond with. Any wizard with a White Scale as a familiar is considered a wizard to be listened to.

It is because of this that Draco Malfoy was currently trying to figure out the rules of a muggle card game.

A White Scale had dropped off the briefcase full of cards earlier that day. At first he was going to toss them but his father warned him not too. The Dark Lord also found out about the delivery. After looking at the cards, he smiled (at least Draco hoped it was a smile), and demanded that the boy learn the game. Even the Dark Lord knew to listen to anyone that could make a dragon carry mail.

The game was confusing to say the least, but one thing stood out more than anything else. Putting down the rule book, he picked up the one card he knew would be in his deck. While the image was frozen, like all muggle images, for some reason the card sang to him. Smiling, he put the Red Eyes Darkness Dragon back with the rest.

-line break-

Hermione was worried. She looked at the card for the thousandth time. Wandless magic. Harry had preformed wandless magic. Then the Scales had showed up. Bill had been called in to look at them. And he did. And left after the briefest of looks. As he left, fled really, he told them to not take the Scales from Harry. She looked at the card again. He wasn't seen for a week after that.

Judgment Dragon. That's what Harry had summoned. She looked at the card again. She played Duel Monsters during the summers. Most Hogwarts students wouldn't play it. The game wasn't big in the UK. She also knew Harry didn't play. His relatives would never buy him cards. And yet...

She looked at the card again. Judgment Dragon. A rare card. She was lucky to have even got one. Sighing, she knew what to do. Opening her trunk she got out her writing supplies. Her parents might not like running errands for her, but she needed to find out what was going on. And to do that, she would have to teach Ron and Harry how to play.

-line break-

Yugi, Tea, Joey, and Tristan sat in the back of the cargo plane. Ishizu had told them it would be uncomfortable, but right now they needed to be in England. Marik wasn't with them. He had contacted a few of the remaining Rare Hunters. Though he had disbanded the criminal side of the organization, many members still felt some loyalty to him. He was already rounding them up, this time as something less evil. Surprisingly, many members were already preparing to do just that without him. With him, it was so much easier.

In a few hours, the friends would arrive in London. And from there, the search for answers can begin.

-line break-

The Prime Minister sat looking over the information that was just delivered to him. Seto Kaiba, the youngest billionaire on the planet, head of a multinational gaming corporation, had just given the PM more information then he knew what to do with. And, was currently asking permission to host a Duel Monsters tournament.

The pamphlets were bad enough. Whoever wrote them didn't seem to understand fiscal planning. Then came the "law books." He didn't know whether to laugh or scream at them. Ever since he found out about the "magical community" he had pretty much ignored it, but the information given here... he could ignore that.

Of course he couldn't do anything right now. Too many unknowns. But, if Kaiba could pull off the tournament...

_AN: For anyone who missed it. Seto and Mokaba are Stephen and Malcolm LeStrange. Seto was born 2 years before Harry and end up mostly watched by Sirius until he was imprisoned. Minor HP Canon change, Bellatrix and her husband went on the run looking for ways to bring Voldie back after torturing the Longbottoms. They were arrested just after Mokaba was born. She tried to kill the boy for slowing her down and letting the Aurors catch up. Kaiba is a squib, (or is he), and was dropped off with his younger brother after Lucius found out._


	5. Chapter 5

_AN:_

_Luiz: of course he didn't. And Kaiba bought the bank for reasons I reveal this chapter but I should have mentioned last chapter._

_This chapter has the first card game in it. I am currently using LackeyCCG to build all decks and act out all matches. All cards are real, unless otherwise noted at the end of the chapter. Please feel free to let me know how well I did._

Chapter 4: TRAINing

Hermione was quite surprised when her parents met her at the at King's Cross. Even more surprised when the handed her a briefcase full of cards. Apparently Gringotts had been giving the families of muggleborns refunds. It seems that the Ministry had imposed an exchange rate of pounds to gallons that was not only unfair, but only targeted non-pureblood families. "The new owner turned Gringotts into a private bank and is fixing it." Her dad told her. "We got your letter just after the bank owled us."

The Grangers were unable to stay together for long. The parents were going on a second honeymoon and Hermione had to get to the train.

-line break-

"You know what to do Moki?"

The young wizard smirked. "Yes big brother." He pulled out a notebook. "I even have some of Tea's friendship speeches to help me."

Seto groaned. "I want you to do more than just annoy people Moki. I also want you to keep an eye out for duelists you think will be decent in the next tournament."

The young boy smirked. "Yes big brother."

-line break-

Draco was vey self-conscious as he went into the prefect carriage. According to the rulebook, the best duelists kept their decks on them at all times. It was strange, having a plastic deck box on under his robes. His father had told him that if he was going to play the muggle game, then he had better be better than them. Draco felt the same way.

A silent roar echoed in his mind as Granger walked into the carriage, oddly late. Weasley had been there already.

The roar that alerted him was another reason he was so self conscious. Ever since he finished his deck, he had heard the roar at odd times. He had also thought he had seen the Red Eyes Darkness Dragon. Even holding his deck he felt the strangest feelings of magic in the cards. Now, as Granger entered, he felt that magic flare again. And it came from her.

He kept an eye on her all through the meeting. It was boring anyway. Afterwards he followed her. He wanted to keep an eye on her, but something else was bothering him. The dragon's roar was bothering him. It was "talking" to him on a regular basis, ever since he had finished the deck; the dragon started appearing in his dreams, trying to tell him something. The sounds of roaring annoyed him. It roared angrily when ever his father was around, strangely purred around his mother. The sound it made with Granger was strange, almost challenging. Of course the worst sound it made was around the Dark Lord. A sound of pain and range, a sound of pure hate that filled Draco with an urge to kill the Dark Lord.

-line break-

"Are you sure about this Hermione?"

The girl in question just looked at Harry as she opened the briefcase her parents gave her. Reaching into a pocket in her robes she pulled out a card. "Do you recognize this?" she asked.

Harry looked closely at the card, but Ron only glanced at it before he went wide eyed. "What in the name of Merlin's baggy trousers." He looked closely at the card. "Judgment Dragon. That's the thing that…"

Hermione glared at him. "Quiet you." She started pulling cards out and sorting them out slightly. "I don't know what this means. But frankly, I don't want to take chances so you are going to have to learn this game. For some reason, I think knowing this game will be important."

Neville, Ginny, and Luna watched in fascination. Neville was confused, as was Ginny. Luna just at the cards with wide eyes, eventually picking up _Hungry Burger_ and smiling. "Hmmm, it looks like the natural enemy of Nargles. Mind if I keep this Hermione?"

Hermione looked at Luna. "Uh, sure." She looked through the various cards and handed Luna another card. "You might have this one as well." She said as she handed _Burger Recipe._

Hermione started going over the rules with Ron and Harry, she had just finished going over star levels when the door opened and Draco walked in.

The Slytherin looked at the cards spread about the cabin. "Looks like the mudblood is aping her betters." He said coldly.

Hermione looked closely at Draco. "Are you saying you play this as well?"

Draco made a sound of disgust. "I don't 'play.' That wouldn't do my skill justice."

Harry opened his mouth to say something, but Hermione stopped him. "You know Draco, I've just started and I was wondering if you could show me how it's played. Maybe a little exhibition match? That is, unless you think a 'mudblood' is too much of a challenge for you."

Ron was about to say something, but this time Harry stopped him. Obviously no one in the Wizarding World knew about hustling someone.

Draco had just turned an interesting shade of red. "Alright Granger, you're on!" He pulled out his wand and conjured a table. Hermione smirked as she pulled out her deck and shuffled. She took her place across from Draco and slammed the deck onto the table.

"IT'S TIME TO DUEL!" They both said at the same time.

Draco: 8000

Hermione: 8000

They each drew 5 cards. "Ladies first," Draco said condescendingly.

Hermione glared as she drew her card. "All right, I place one card face down and one monster in defense mode. Then I end."

"Humph, I figured you'd do a better opening move then that." Draco drew his card. "I summon Magna Drago in attack mode. And then I attack your face down card."

Hermione smirked as she flipped over D.D. Warrior Lady. "Sorry Draco, but my Warrior Lady has 200 more defense then your dragon has attack." She then pulled out her wand and waved it. The life points in the game appeared beside them, Draco's dropping by 200.

Draco frowned. "I end."

Hermione smiled as she drew her next card. "You should really be ready for anything Draco. I sacrifice my Warrior Lady to summon Caius the Shadow Monarch. But more than that, when Caius is tribute summoned I can select on card on the field and remove it from play, and I select your Magna Draco." Draco could only grumble as he removed his only monster from the field. "And now Caius, attack with Shadow Flare." Draco's LP dropped again, this time by 2400, but Harry had seen a strange thing. Standing on the card was a tiny image, an almost perfect 3D version of the monster on the card, and when Hermione had ordered the attack it had done just that.

"Uh, Ron," Harry whispered, "is there something standing on Hermione's card?"

Ron looked at Harry and shook his head.

"I end." Hermione said.

Draco smirked evilly when he saw the card he drew. "You're better then I though Granger, but not good enough. I summon Red Eyes Black Chick to the field. It's a small creature, and no match for Caius, but I activate its special ability. By sending it from the field to the graveyard, I can summon this from my hand; come forth Red Eyes Black Dragon."

Hermione could only look in shock at the card he just played. "Wow, that's one of the rarest dragons in the game. I always wanted to face off against it. Too bad it won't be around for long. I activate my face down card, Bottomless Trap Hole. You summoned a monster with over 1500 attack, so now it is removed from play."

Draco let lose a string of curse words as he removed the monster from the field. I have nothing else to do, I end."

Hermione drew her card. "Hmmm, I don't like these cards so I play Hand Destruction. We each discard 2 cards and draw 2 new ones."

Hermione discarded D.D. Scout Plane and Exiled Force while Draco discarded 2 copies of Troop Dragon.

Hermione smiled. "Better. I now summon Marauding Captain in attack mode. I then use its special ability to special summon another level 4 or lower monster, this time D.D. Assailant." Hermione grinned. "As you have no monsters on the field, I attack directly for 5300. That leaves you with just 100 LPs left. Your move."

Draco looked at his hand. "Finally. You might have gotten rid of my Red Eyes once, but you won't do it again. I summon Red Eyes Black Chick, and then activate its ability to summon Red Eyes Black Dragon again. But don't get use to him. I sacrifice him to summon my Red Eyes Darkness Dragon. And due to its special ability it gains 300 attack for ever dragon in my graveyard. And thanks to you that's now a total of 5, making its attack 3900. And I will use that to attack your weakest monster, the Marauding Captain. I then end."

Hermione drew and smiled. "Well Draco, it's been fun, but this duel is over. First I attack your dragon with my Assailant." Everyone looked at her like she was crazy. "Sure my life points drop to 3100, but when D.D. Assailant is destroyed by battle, it and the monster that destroyed it are removed from play. As the Red Eyes Darkness Dragon was your only monster, which leaves you wide open for an attack by Caius. Thank you Draco, and the next time you play some one, make sure they aren't a regional finalist."

Harry started laughing at that as Draco got his cards together. As he left he bumped into some first year that had been watching and was giggling at Granger's comment.

For the rest of the trip Hermione tried to explain the game better, but both she and Ron had to take time out to occasionally patrol the train. Draco remained hidden in his compartment unless he had to patrol, even going so far as to lock his goons out of the cabin.


End file.
